In this post we will be looking at the Meaning of Educational Administration, types of Educational Administration, its Objectives, the Concept of Educational policy and the various types of education policies in Nigeria.
INTRODUCTION.
Educational reforms originating from governments do not include grass roots policy making that includes the principals who will be implementing the policies. Changes introduced to education systems in Nigeria continue to be political rather than evidence informed, logical and ethical. Governments also dictate and enforce education to further political goals or the survival of a particular ideology or social system.
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Meanwhile, government education policies arouse fluctuating praise and condemnation; especially under pressure from global demands to comply with standardized exams and standardized tables, often with negative repercussions for school discourse and daily practices. educational change surpasses the rational logic. Political logic is guided by the simple pragmatism of gaining fast solutions and saving time for policy planning, development and implementation. As a result, politicians conduct weak assessments of change need. In many cases, leading politicians tend to borrow policies that worked in some educational systems because they want to get re-elected on their proven success; however, these educational change interventions resulting from borrowed policies tend to fail.
WHAT IS EDUCATIONAL ADMINISTRATION?
Educational administration is defined as the process of controlling, organizing and directing both human and material resources in an educational institution. This term is also used to describe the study of these processes.
The Objectives of Educational Administration
- To provide proper education to students
- To ensure adequate utilization of all resources
- To ensure professional ethics and professional development among teachers
- To organize educational programmes for acquainting students with the art of democratic living and giving them excellent training in democratic citizenship
- To mobilize the community.
- To organize co-curricular activities effectively for developing talents of students and work efficiency of educational teachers,
- To get the work done
- To prepare students for taking their places in various vocations and avenues of life
- To train the students in developing scientific attitude and objective outlook among them towards all aspects and activities of life
- To ensure qualitative improvement of education.
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THE CONCEPT OF EDUCATIONAL POLICY IN NIGERIA.
Educational policies are initiatives mostly by governments that determine the direction of an educational system. for a policy to qualify as an educational policy, it must be distinct from other policies. Educational policies are distinguishable from other policies by the fact that policies on education are part and parcel of educational institutions. However, it is important to note that not all policies formulated in educational institutions can qualify as educational po1icies. Generally, policies must be rational and purposeful to enable them to stand the test of time, in 1977 Nigeria operated an educational policy inherited from Britain at independence.
The inability of this policy to satisfy the national aspirations of the country rendered it unpopular. In 1969 a National Curriculum Conference was organized which reviewed the inherited curriculum and identified new national goals for Nigeria’s education.
The National Policy on Education is anchored on Nigeria’s philosophy on education as enunciated through the nation’s objectives.
Nigeria has five main national objectives as provided by the Second National Development Plan and accepted as the necessary foundation for the National Policy on Education. They are the building of:
- A free and democratic society
- A just and egalitarian society
- A united strong and self-reliant nation
- A great and dynamic economy
- A land of bright and full opportunities for all citizens
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Efforts have been made to develop education in Nigeria since independence in 1960. Various policies in the interest of education have been formulated, Unfortunately, these efforts have not produced the desired effect. The state of education in Nigeria is still deplorable. It is so bad that some resourceful Nigerians prefer to send their children to Europe, America and even small African countries such as Ghana that has only two universities as against over sixty universities in Nigeria that lack adequate learning facilities.
Apart from the general problems of policy implementation common to most countries, especially those of the third world, some factors have been identified as peculiar to Nigeria and inhibiting her educational growth. It is no longer news that Nigeria is the giant of Africa in terms of resourcefulness as a major oil and gas producer. Ironically, most Nigerians live below the poverty line of one dollar per day. The following reasons, among others, account for this deplorable situation. Nigerian factors that militate against the implementation of educational polices are as follow:
- inadequate teaching staff
- lack of adequate workshops
- inadequate laboratories and libraries
- insufficient funds
- non-availability of guidance
- counselling services.
CONCLIUTION.
The implementation of educational policies in Nigeria are constrained by the following factors.
- Most educational policies are well focused but the planning is often defective, making implementation difficult.
- Resources available for the implementation of a given educational policy are often over-estimated and thereby elicit unrealistic expectations that fail to materialize.
- Reliable data have not been a popular feature in planning education in Nigeria. This situation has not facilitated the effective implementation of educational plans.
- The implementation of educational policies is also often hindered by the interplay of politics, which may sometimes relegate reality to obscurity.
- Qualified teachers are not in sufficient numbers in the entire educational system in Nigeria. Studies have already confirmed this to be true of the U.B.E. Scheme, as well as the secondary education program. The tertiary level of education, where hundreds of students receive lectures hanging out of windows and doors and taught by one lecturer, is also confirmation.
- Facilities such as classrooms, offices, laboratories, workshops, libraries, power, water are basic requirements in every school system. These have been found to be grossly inadequate in most Nigerian educational institutions. The Academic Staff Union of Universities (ASUU) has confirmed this in its numerous Publications.
- Insufficiency of funds for implementing educational policies in Nigeria is a problem that has recurred in almost every implementation study that has been carried out. The importance of funds for carrying out any activity need not be over-emphasized.